Invest in yourself

The proportion of all money invested in one group of assets versus other groups. Examples of how assets might be grouped are: Australian shares, international shares, listed property securities, direct property investments, cash, and fixed interest securities.

Resources owned by any entity - a company, an investment fund, etc. Investments are assets, and may be classified in various ways. For example, assets may be classified as Australian shares, international shares, listed property securities, direct property investments, cash and fixed interest securities.

See Asset Allocation.

A unique code used by the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) to identify listed companies. For example, the ASX code for Commonwealth Bank is CBA.

The Australian share market. The ASX brings buyers and sellers together to trade listed investments in shares, unit trusts, options, and some fixed interest securities.

A market characterised by falling security prices (opposite to bull market).

A bid is an offer made by an investor to purchase a stock (opposite to offer).

A debt security, rather than a share. Bonds are usually issued by governments and large corporations in return for a principal amount on which interest is paid to the investor for a specified time. The interest rate is fixed - thus the reference to fixed interest security which is applied to bonds and debentures. The principal amount invested is repaid to the investor on maturity.

An individual or trading firm that charges a fee/commission for executing buy and sell orders for an investor.

It is a fee that stockbroker charges for executing buy and sell orders on a licensed financial market for clients. Brokerage may be calculated as a percentage of the value bought or sold, or may be a flat fee for service.

A market characterised by rising security prices (opposite to bear market).

The difference between the proceeds of sale of an investment asset and the cost. If the proceeds of sale are less than cost, a capital loss is made.

The difference between the proceeds of sale of an investment asset and the cost. If the proceeds of sale exceed cost, a capital gain is made.

CHESS stands for Clearing House Electronic Sub-register System. The CHESS Settlement Facility is a computerised share registry and settlement system operated by the ASX Settlement & Transfer Corporation Pty Ltd (ASTC), a subsidiary of the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX). CHESS records an account's share ownership via the ASX's computer-based share and settlement transaction system.

CommSec CHESS sponsored stock means your shares are held with your broker, CommSec, on the ASX’s CHESS system. You have a holder identification number (HIN) which applies to all stocks held on your CommSec account when you are CHESS sponsored

The fee or payment made to an agent for services such as arranging sale of shares, purchase of a home, etc. Also referred to as brokerage.

Document sent by a stockbroker to a client confirming a purchase or sale of a security, showing details of the transaction, price, brokerage and other charges involved.

A cross trade occurs when a broker executes an order to buy and sell the same security at the same time, in which both the buyer and seller are clients of the broker. A Cross Trade is represented by XT in the course of sales. If your order has been cross traded you will be able to view this on your confirmation contract note where it will be stated as 'Crossed Trade'.

A portfolio which contains assets across more than one asset class (eg property, shares, fixed interest). The aim is to reduce risk while achieving a balanced return.

Is a payment made to shareholders from the company. This payment is a portion of the company's profits paid out to shareholders. ASX companies pay dividends twice a year, usually as an 'interim' dividend and a 'final dividend'.

An ETF is a listed fund that aims to track the performance of a basket of shares that make up a particular index. ETFs aim to replicate the performance of a particular index (such as the S&P/ASX50), and therefore are made up of the same shares as the relevant index.

Describes an investor or a managed fund that aims to achieve steady capital growth over a medium to long term investment horizon.

A Holder Identification Number, also known as a HIN, is a unique number that will identify you as CHESS/Broker Sponsored holder. When you are CHESS sponsored with a Broker you will be issued with a unique number. This unique number can register multiple holdings under the single HIN. A HIN starts with the letter X and followed by ten numbers e.g. X0001234567.

The first time a company's shares are offered for sale to the public.

An Issuer Sponsored holding is maintained by the issuer of your shares. All details related to your holdings are maintained by the Issuer at the Share Registry. Your Issuer Sponsored holding can be identified by an 'I' at the start of your Shareholder Reference Number (SRN) which is printed on your holding statement. 

Limit orders allow you to set a maximum purchase price for your buy order, or a minimum sale price for your sell orders. If the market doesn't reach your limit price, your order will not be executed.

You can place an 'At Limit' order during market hours. You can also place an 'At Limit' order when the market is closed and it will be queued ready for processing when the market opens. Please note that an 'At Limit' order will not be accepted, without any advice to you, if we consider the limit price to be too far away from the prevailing market price of that stock.

Market orders will go into market to execute at the best available price, however the execution and the price is not guaranteed. Market orders cannot be accepted outside of market hours or when trading in a particular stock is halted or suspended.

The minimum amount you are able to purchase online is $500 worth of shares, warrants or CFDs. There is no minimum for Exchange Traded Options.

Offer is the price the seller is offering to sell the stock (opposite to bid).

The collection of a person's financial assets. Portfolios can be expressed by asset class (eg shares, fixed income securities, property, cash etc), or itemised within the asset class into the individual stocks or securities.

The different types of investments offered by entities such as companies and government authorities. Shares, debentures and bonds are examples of securities.

Settlement for your trades takes place two trading days after the trade, known as T+2. Cleared funds must be available in your nominated account at the start of the second trading day after your 'Buy' order is executed.

Also known as SRN is a unique number that identifies you as an Issuer Sponsored Holder with a listed company. A SRN usually starts with a letter 'I' followed by numbers e.g. I00012345678. If you hold shares in more than one company and choose to be Issuer Sponsored, you will have a different SRN for each shareholding.

An equity or part ownership of a company.

Is the price of a single share of a company

Share Registry – Is an organisation that provides stock registration and transfer services to companies listed on stock markets including the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) and Chi-X.